NEW-YORK:PRINTED AND SOLD BY SAMUEL WOOD,At the Juvenile Book-store,No. 357, Pearl-street.

1813.

[Illustration]

And God made every thing that creepeth upon the earth. Gen. 1. 25.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z.

* * * * *

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z.

* * * * *

_A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z_.

* * * * *

_a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z_.

* * * * *

fi fl ff ffi ffl----_fi fl ff ffi ffl_.

Observe the insect race, ordained to keep The silent sabbath of a half year's sleep! Entom'd beneath the filmy web they lie And wait the influence of a kinder sky; When vernal sunbeams pierce the dark retreat, The heaving tomb distends with vital heat; The full formed brood, impatient of their cell, Start from their trance, and burst their silken shell.

BARBAULD.

THE HISTORY OF INSECTS.

* * * * *

Insects are so called from a separation in the middle of their bodies,seemingly cut into two parts, and joined together by a small ligature,as we see in wasps and common flies.

However small and contemptible this class of beings may appear, at firstthought, yet, when we come to reflect, and carefully investigate, weshall be struck with wonder and astonishment, and shall discover, thatthe smallest gnat that buzzes in the meadow, is as much a subject ofadmiration as the largest elephant that ranges the forest, or thehugest whale which ploughs the deep; and when we consider the leastcreature that we can imagine, myriads of which are too small to bediscovered without the help of glasses, and that each of their bodies ismade up of different organs or parts, by which they receive or retainnourishment, &c. with the power of action, how natural the exclamation,O "Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all."Under these considerations, that they are the work of the same great,good, and Almighty hand that formed us, and that they are all capable offeeling pleasure and pain, surely every little child, as well as olderperson, ought carefully to avoid every kind of cruelty to any kind ofcreature, great or small.

The supreme court of Judicature at Athens punished a boy for putting outthe eyes of a poor bird; and parents and masters should never overlookan instance of cruelty to any thing that has life, however minute, andseemingly contemptible the object may be.

"I would not enter on my list of friends (Though grac'd with polish'd manners, and fine sense, Yet wanting sensibility) the man Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm."

COWPER.

ELEPHANT-BEETLE.

[Illustration]

The elephant-beetle is the largest of this kind hitherto known, and isfound in South America, particularly in Guiana, about the rivers Surinamand Oroonoko. It is of a black colour, and the whole body is coveredwith a shell, full as thick and as strong as that of a small crab. Thereis one preserved in the museum that measures more than six inches.

GRASSHOPPER.

[Illustration]

Grasshoppers are too common to need description, as they abound almostwherever there is green grass. One summer only is their period of life;they are hatched in the spring, and die in the fall; previous to which,they deposite their eggs in the earth, which the genial warmth of thenext season brings to life. They are food for many of the featheredrace.

CRICKET.

[Illustration]

There are two classes of crickets: viz. the field cricket, and the housecricket; the latter inhabits warm places, the holes of the hearth, &c.from whence we hear its notes, which are agreeable: it is said, thatthey are purchased by some, and kept in a kind of cage, for the sake oftheir music. Field crickets inhabit the meadows, and subsist on roots,&c. as does another species, called the mole cricket.

LOCUST.

[Illustration]

There are different kinds of the locust; those we are acquainted with,in this country, are represented in the above cut. In some seasons, theyare scarcely heard at all; in others, they are more numerous. About themiddle or latter part of summer, we hear them among the leaves of thetrees: their notes, which are continued about the space of one minute,are loud at the beginning, and grow lower and lower, till they cease;when they immediately fly to another tree, begin again, and end in thesame way, and so on.

In the eastern countries, a kind or kinds of locust, at differentperiods, have been very numerous, and have done abundance of damage. Inthe year 1650, a cloud of locusts entered Russia, in three differentplaces; and from thence spread over Poland and Lithuania; the air wasdarkened, and the earth covered, in some places, to the depth of fourfeet; the trees bent with heir weight, and the damage sustained exceededcomputation. Locusts were among the plagues of Egypt: sec Exodus, x. 15.

FLEA.

[Illustration]

This very troublesome little animal multiplies very fast among old rags,dirt, straw, and litter, where hogs, cats, or dogs sleep; and in thehair and bristles of those creatures: therefore, as a means of avoidingsuch unwelcome neighbours, in the springs the cleanly farmer scrapes upthe rubbish about his woodpile, and around his house and barn, andremoves it into his field, where it also repays him by manuring hislands. They abound in warm countries, particularly in the southern partsof France and Italy.

When examined by a microscope, the flea is a pleasant object. The bodyis curiously adorned with a suit of polished armour, neatly jointed, andbeset with a great number of sharp pins almost like the quills of aporcupine: it has a small head, large eyes, two horns, or feelers, whichproceed from the head, and four long legs from the breast; they are veryhairy and long, and have several joints, which fold as it were onewithin another.

LOUSE.

[Illustration]

These loathsome animals, however unwelcome, attend in troops, and add tothe afflictions of the unfortunate and lazy; but they are routed by thehand of industry and cleanliness.

In examining the louse with a microscope, its external deformity strikesus with disgust. It has six feet, two eyes, and a sort of sting,proboscis, or sucker, with which it pierces the skin, and sucks theblood. The skin of the louse is hard and transparent, with here andthere several bristly hairs: at the end of each leg are two claws, bywhich it is enabled to lay hold of the hairs, on which it climbs. Thereis scarcely any animal known to multiply so fast as this unwelcomeintruder: from an experiment of Lieuenhoek, a louse in eight weeks, maysee five thousand of its descendants.

Among the ancients, what is called the lousy disease was not uncommon:Antiochus, Herod, and others are said to have died of this disorder.

ITCH ... MITE.

[Illustration]

CHEGO ... DEATHWATCH.

There are many species of mites, beside the itch animal and mite above:to the naked eye, they appear like moving particles of dust: but themicroscope discovers them to be perfect animals, having as regular afigure, and performing all the functions of life as perfectly ascreatures that exceed them many times in bulk: their eggs are so smallthat a regular computation shews that 90 millions of them are not solarge as a common Pigeon's egg.

The Chego is a very small animal, about one fourth the size of a commonflea: it is very troublesome, in warm climates, to the poor blacks, suchas go barefoot, and the slovenly: it penetrates the skin, under which itlays a bunch of eggs, which swell to the bigness of a small pea.

The Deathwatch, of which there are two kinds, is an insect famous for aticking noise, like a watch, which superstitious people take for apresage of death, in the family where it is heard.

SCORPION.

[Illustration]

This is one of the largest of the insect tribe. It is met with indifferent countries, and of various sizes, from two or three inches tonearly a foot in length: it somewhat resembles a lobster, and casts itsskin, as the lobster does its shell.

Scorpions are common in hot countries: they are very bold and watchful:when any thing approaches, they erect their tails, and stand ready toinflict the direful sting. In some parts of Italy and France, they areamong the greatest pests that plague mankind: they are very numerous,and are most common in old houses, in dry or decayed walls, and amongfurniture, insomuch that it is attended with, much danger to remove thesame: their sting is generally a very deadly poison, though not in allcases, owing to a difference of malignity of different animals, or someother cause.

In the time of the children of Israel, scorpions were a plague in Egyptand Canaan, as appears by the sacred writings. See Deuteronomy, viii.15, and other passages.

ANTS.

[Illustration]

'Who can observe the faithful ant, And not provide for future want.'

These little animals have been for ages considered as patterns ofindustry: they were specially noticed by the wise king Solomon. He says,"go to the ant, thou sluggard, consider her ways, and be wise." The antlays eggs in the manner of common flies; from these eggs are hatchedsmall maggots, or worms without legs; these, after a short time, changeinto large white aureliae, or chrysales, which are usually called ant'seggs. When a nest of these creatures is disturbed, however great theirown danger, the care they take of their offspring is remarkable: eachtakes in its foreceps, a young one, often larger than itself and carriesit off.

These little insects form to themselves, with much industry andapplication, of earth, sticks, leaves, &c. little hillocks, calledant-hills, in the form of a cone: in these, they dwell, breed, anddeposite their stores: they are commonly built in woody places: thebrushy plains on Long-Island abound with them: they are from one to twofeet in height.

HONEY-BEE.

[Illustration]

This is an extraordinary, curious, and remarkably industrious littleinsect, to which mankind are indebted for one of the most palatable andwholesome sweets which nature affords; and which was one of the choicearticles with which the promised land was said to abound.

In every hive of bees, there are three kinds; the queen, the drones,and the labourers: of these last, there are by far the greatest number:and as cold weather approaches, they drive from the hives and destroythe drones, that have not laboured in summer, and will not let them eatin winter. If bees are examined through a glass hive, all appears atfirst like confusion: but, on a more careful inspection, every animal isfound regularly employed. It is very delightful, when the maple andother trees are in bloom, or the clover in the meadows, to be abroad andhear their busy hum.

Of these flies, which are called by many Spindles, there are variousspecies. They all have two very large eyes, covering the whole surfaceof the head. They fly very swiftly, and prey upon the wing, clearing theair of innumerable little flies. The great ones live about water, butthe smaller are common among hedges, and about gardens.

BUTTERFLY.

[Illustration]

Of butterflies there are many kinds. How wonderful the various changesof this class of insects! The butterflies lay their eggs: from thesehatch out worms or caterpillars, which change their skins several times,and, finally, become aureliae, chrysales, or silkworms, out of whichcome the beautiful butterflies.

SPIDER.

[Illustration]

There are many kinds of spiders; some of which are said to grow to sucha size that they will catch small birds: some are poisonous, but thegreater part are harmless, although to most people their looks aredisgusting. The web of a spider, which is a net for catching its prey,is an astonishing piece of curiosity.

SILK WORM

[Transcriber's Note: The heading 'SILK WORM' was added in order toimprove clarity.]

[Illustration]

The silk worm is a very valuable insect: it is produced from an egg of ayellowish colour, about the size of a small pin's head, that is laid bya moth, or butterfly. The above cut represents a male and female, andher eggs, of which she lays several hundreds: the moths live but a fewdays; they never eat, and die directly after the eggs are laid.

[Illustration]

This cut shews the appearance of the worm, which at first is very smalland black. Its food is the leaves of the white mulberry: as it grows insize, at four different periods, it apparently sickens, and changes itsskin, and finally, when full grown, it spins a ball of silk, called acone, or cocoon, the thread of which is about three hundred yards long:in the centre of this ball the worm entombs itself, and experiences achange to a state called an aurelia, or chrysallis, as seen below theball: from this aurelia, the moth that lays the eggs is hatched, andthus goes on the round of this animal's changes, or transmigrations.

They are natives of China, and were brought into Italy, above twelvehundred years ago; from thence into Spain; afterwards into France; muchlater into Germany and the northern countries; and some have been rearedin the United States of America.

SAMUEL WOOD

Hereby informs the good little Boys and Girls, both of city and country,who love to read better than to play, that if they will please to callat his JUVENILE BOOK-STORE, NO. 357, Pearl-street, New-York, it will behis pleasure to furnish them with a great variety of pretty littlebooks, with neat nuts, calculated to afford to the young mind pleasingand useful information. Besides many from Philadelphia, New Haven, andelsewhere, he has nearly fifty kinds of his own printing, and proposesto enlarge the number.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

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